CONTENTS

I. THE "TRIGGER MAN" ACTS 3

II. THE HOOD Is LIFTED 5

III. THE BLACK LEGION RIDES 11

IV. THE LEGION'S POLITICAL FRONT 23

V. THE ROOTS OF THE BLACK LEGION 29

VI. THE BLACK LEGIONAND LAW AND ORDER 32

VII. A NATIONAL MENACE 35

VIII. FALSE AMERICANISM-ITS NEW HOOD 38

IX. STAMP OUT THE BLACK LEGION 42

P UBLISHED BY W ORKERS LIBRARY P UBLISHER S, INC . , P. O .BOX 148, STA. D, N EW YORK CITY. A UGUST, 1936. ....201' The Black Legion Rides By GEORGE MORRIS I. THE "TRIGGER MAN" ACTS THE meeting at Findlater Temple broke up. The men quickly formed into squads and rushed into cars for the "night ride". Two of the cars, in advance of the others, reached a dark, lonely spot on Dix Road on the outskirts of Detroit. The other cars were apparently delayed by the opening of the River Rouge bridge. Seven occupants of the cars jumped out and went into a huddle. They spoke in low tones and repeatedly turned to look back on the road to see if other cars were coming. Their special concern was a car with black robes, hoods and rope required for a "necktie party". For that is what it was to be. "Well, I guess they must have got lost", said "Colonel" Harvey Davis, a tall, lanky, rat-faced creature. Then, turning to a short, stocky member of the party, he commanded: "Dean, get Poole out." Dean instantly drew two revolvers and stepped toward one of the cars. "Poole, come out of that car!" he said. A young man emerged and soon found himself In a circle of seven men. "Poole, you have beaten your wife for the last time", said the "Colonel". "She is in a hospital now with a broken rib." "You have me wrong," Poole protested. "I never beat her. She is in a hospital having a baby." The "Colonel" motioned to Dean. Dean promptly pumped five bullets into Poole out of his .45 automatic and three out of his .38. Urban Lee followed with three more shots. Charles Poole, the young P.W.A. worker, without a murmur, sank down, and rolled over into a ditch, stone dead. 3 The men piled into their cars and drove off. In the city they stepped into a beer garden and drank to a good night's work. After a warning from the "Colonel" to keep their mouths shut or "you'll get what Poole got", all scattered to their homes. The Black Legion Comes to Light Ten days later, on May 22, 1936, the -world was startled by as weir d and horrible a story as was ever to ld. The Poole murder was only the latest outrage in a three-year trail of crimes by a secret organization of night riders ca lled the Black Legion. They wore black robes and hoods adorned with a skull and cross-bones. From the bits of information that were squeezed out of the first sixteen arrested for the murder of Poole it was learned that the Black Legion was not just an "ordinary" organization of night riders. It seemed to incorporate all the features of the Ku Klux Klan-it was against Communists, Negroes, Catholics, Jews, and foreign-born, it was organized on a mi litary plan, was active in industrial regions and had friends in high political places. Murder and crime riddles left unsolved for years were re­ called. Captain Ira H. Marmon, of the Michigan State Police, expressed his conviction that at least fifty unexplained "suicides" in the state were the work of this Black Legion. Floggings, mur­ der, assassination plots, bombings of labor institutions, burning of homes and workers' camps, and faked leaflets designed to discredit labor were referred for reinvestigation. Soon there were enough evidence and confessions to place these acts definitely at the door of the Black Legion. At this writing, though police have 'not taken very .diligently to trailing all clues, more than 60 members of the terror organiza­ Lion have been arrested, charged with a part in the crimes. At last was discovered the secret organization which for over three years had menaced the people of Michigan, Ohio, and other parts. - - . II. THE HOOD IS LIFTED The form "and program of the Black Legion and its caliber are vividly illustrated in the fearful initiation rites that its applicants must go through. The oath that is administered supposedly incor­ porates secrets of the organization. Secrecy must be kept on pain of death by the Legion's "execution squad". The scene is a dark woods or an unlighted basement. The appli­ cants are brought in by their respective sponsors and led inside a circle of black-robed night riders. They kneel as a pistol is pressed against the ribs; another is aimed at the heart. Then the officer in charge administers the oath, of which the following are parts:

"In the' name of God and the devil, one to re ward, the other to punish, and by the powers of light and darkness, good and evil, here under the bla ck arch of heaven's avenging symbol I pledg e and consecrate my heart, my brain, my bod y and my limbs and swear by all the powers of heaven and hell to devote my life to the obedience of my superiors and that no danger or peril shall deter me from executing th eir orders. "I will exert every possibl e means in my power for the extermina­ tion of the anarchi sts, Communists, th e Roman hierarchy and th eir ab ettors. "I further pledge my heart, my brain, my bod y and Illy limbs never to betray a comra de and that I will submit to all the tortures that mankind can inflict and suffer the most horrible death rather than reveal a single word of thi s, my oath. "Before violating a single clause or implied pledge of thi s, my obligation, I will pray to an aveng ing God and to an unmerciful devil to tear my heart out and roast it over flames of sulphur. "That my head be split open and my brains be scattered over th e earth, that Illy body be ripped up, my bowels be torn out and fed to the carrion birds. "That each of my limbs be broken with stones and th en cut off by in ches that the y may be food for th e foulest birds of air. " And lastly may Illy soul be given unto torment; that my body be submerg ed into molten metal and stifled in the flames of hell. and that this punishment may be meted out to me through all etern ity in th e name of God our creator. Amen."

Then follow the secrets : 5 The Black Legion's Secrets

"The organization is one of chivalry and daring. It follows on the footsteps of the guerrilla bands of the South which were famed by their courage and bravery by their enemies whom they considered as outlaws. You have signified your willingness to join the organi­ zation. "You are outlawed indeed. We have no charter, and no initiation fees were asked of you when you came here. If we were chartered under the laws of our state government our roster would have been available at all times. "This organization was founded on Southern chivalry and is obligated to the preservation of the white race. The native-born white people of America are menaced on every side from above and below. "If America is in the melting pot the white people are neither the aristocratic scum on top nor the dregs of society on the bottom which is composed of anarchists and Communists and all cults and creeds believing in social equality. "Our ancestors won this land from the savages and paid for it with their blood. At the present neither of the two greater political parties stand for the laws and principles that the founders of this country intended us to enjoy. "The Republicans stand for the rich while the Democrats seem to be in the grasp of the Pope of Rome. "We fight as guerrillas, using any weapon that comes to our hand, preferably the ballot. .".We regard as enemies of ourselves and our country all alieris, Negroes, Jews and cults and creeds believing in racial equality and owing allegiance to any foreign potentate."

After this follows a series of questions to the applicant:

Arms and Lynch Law

"Will you put this organization above any to which you now be­ long, have belonged or ever hope to? "Would you be willing to forget your party and vote for the best man regardless of what party he belongs to if ordered to do so by your superior officers in this organization? "Are you willing to take orders and go to your death if necessary to carry them out? "Do you believe in white supremacy and that no Negro should have authority over a white man? " Do you believe in intermarriage between races? "Do you believe in restricted immigration and deportation of all undesirable aliens? "Would you oppose by ballot and if necessary by force of arms 6 any attempt to place any portion of the public tax money in the hands of the Roman Catholic Church? "Will you do all in your power to place only white Protestant Americans in public office? "If it ever should become necessary to lie to protect a member of this organization, would you do so if ordered by your superior officers? "After a term in office of this organization you may be required to perform some service on a higher plane than ordinary routine night riding. This would require a blood pact. Would you be willing to sign your name in your own blood? "What is your attitude toward lynch law? "Are you properly armed-do you own a revolver, rifle or shotgun? If not, will you arm yourself as soon as possible?" Obedience to an Unseen Superior The blood-curdling language in the oath and the spooky scene arranged for the initiation rites are to instill fear into the new member and force him to absolute obedience to higher-ups who, by nature of the organization, are not even known to the members. The object is a disciplined blind army that can be mobilized at the command of these unseen master minds. As a token of membership the new recruit is given a .38 caliber bullet. Tossing of the bullet serves in the same manner as a pass word. As the bullet is given him he is told that if he "talks" he will get the other bullet. "You can't quit the organization unless you are six feet under" is the ABC lesson that a Black Legionnaire is given. The Legion's code of terror is an immense power, though the organization is still in its early stages. Inspector lohn I. Navarre, head of the Detroit Homicide Squad, who directed the investigation into the Poole murder, said the following of this.fear that is instilled in the Black Legion: "I'll say this-whoever organized that outfit was no slouch. Those babies fairly cried before they talked, so sternly had they been im­ pressed with the danger of revealing the slightest detail of the secrets or ritual." Hides Under Many Forms The Black Legion operates through every form that may prove convenient. It may be the "respectable" Wolverine Republican Club, the Wayne County Rifle and Pistol Club (where Dean and other Legionnaires went for regular target practice), the Bullet 7 Club, Malteca Club, Night Riders; Black ' Knights, a Tabernacle church, a group of National Guard officers, or even a secret re­ actionary clique in a trade union. Through false legal fronts the Black Legion lures many into its den. The Black Legion reached out into the National Guard. Repre­ sentative Dickstein of New York charged in the House that he has evidence that traces the origin of the Legion to correspondence between Dr. Samuel J. Rubley, Captain of the Michigan National Guard, Cavalry Division, and William Pelley, National Head of the Silver Rangers, whose program is exactly the same as the Legion's. Part of a letter to Pelley read: "... hop e to have 50 Klansmen mounted in two weeks' time. I have just talked with Doctor ... and we decided to have our families as far from Detroit as possible. I may be exceptionally blood-thirsty but I feel that the later winter snows will be tinged scarl et in the streets of Detroit. Conditions here are bad." The Wayne County Rifle and Pistol Club was another blind for the Black Legion. It operated in the heart of Detroit's down, town area. Among those to appear regularly for target practice were Dean and many of the outstanding leaders in the Legion. The club was regularly chartered and received its share of free ammunition from the United States War Department. The black hand of the hooded terrorists operates beneath these seemingly innocent organizations. According to the stories of Dean and confessions by others, the active members are formed into special agencies, in accordance with assignments-a death squad, anti-Communist squad, arson squad, etc. These ' are given such jobs as bombing a labor hall, burning the house of a labor supporter, murdering a political enemy, or breaking up a labor meeting. . '" The Black Legion. enforces its discipline in the manner of criminal gangs. When a committee is chosen for a "job" another group is chosen to see that the assignment is carried out, or that committee shall itself be marked for a whipping or murder for insubordination. Tile Legion Picks Its Members People 'Iisten with horror to a description of the Black Legion

8 and conclude that such an organization cannot possibly attract many members. Only morons would join such an organization, they believe. But the Black Legion does not depend upon on ly voluntary applications. Members are forced to join in the same manner that girls are forced to become prostitutes. The mo st common method is to lure a selected victrm to a " picnic" or "fishing trip". Taken to a field or woods and placed in a circle of black-robed figures and guns pressed to his ribs and heart, the applicant is forced to swear to the oath. He is placed under the command of a "colonel" and is warned that if he breathes a word he will be killed. Gradually the member is enmeshed in criminal act s. In time, of necessity, he sticks to the gang for his own protection. The same ethics apply here as among a gang of criminals.

Black Leg ion "Job Service" The Black Legion al so uses economic and political tentacl es to hold its members. It conce ntrates on recruiting politi cal job­ holders and govern ment officia ls. Its connections in govern ment are used to place Black Legionnaires on jobs. The majority of tho se arres ted or found to be member s of the Bl ack Leg ion were found to be holding such job s. This network had so developed in Michigan that M. Wesson Di ckinson , State Di rector of Privat e Employment Agencies, was discovered to be linked with the Bla ck Legion. His is a key position for the Black Legion. Ecorse Village, wher e the Great Lakes Steel Corporation is locst cd, furnished a go od example of how the Legi on 's " job serv ­ ice" op erates. The village employment director was found to be a member of the Black Legion, and to ha ve coope rated with the company's employment bureau. He placed Black Legionnaires on jobs, and the company had apparently posted the people recommended by him in strateg ic spots in the plant. As a res ult, a strong lo cal of th e Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel and Tin Workers was smashe d.

The Latest in Night Rid ing Membership figures for the hooded org an ization wer e estimated to range from 30,000 to millions. Th e " mill ions" is obviously s· ridiculous. It was given by William Sheperd, of B~llaire, Ohio, who claimed to have founded the organization. V. H. Effinger, of Lima, Ohio, national head of the Black Legion, also gave fan­ tastic figures. From all indications the low figure is closest to the truth. Though a national organization, it is chiefly in Michigan, and to some extent in Ohio. It will be seen further on why the organ­ izations have taken root first in these regions. Organizations bear­ ing close resemblance to and perhaps organically linked with, the Black Legion have been found in many parts of the country. There are the Silver Shirts, Ku Klux Klan, Crusaders, William Pelley's Christian Party, and others with the same program. Un­ doubtedly the tendency has been toward coordinating these organ­ izations into a national network. The guiding spirit of that tendency is the same black hand that has brought into being the Black Legion, the latest and most horrible of these creations. Who is this moving spirit? Watch where the Black Legion rides and you will recognize who the master minds behind the scene are.

10 III.

THE BLACK LEGION RIDES

In its three years of active "riding" the Black Legion left in its wake dead men, wrecked labor halls, floggings and other horrible acts, of which only a few examples can be given in this pamphlet. Political assassination was an important phase of its work. It aims to sink its claws into public administrations. The Black Legion brought into politics methods that put in the shade the crooked methods of any of the notorious political machines. Dean's story of how he was ordered to kill Arthur Kingsley, Highland Park publisher of oa community paper, illustrates the Black Legion's role in politics. The selected death squad met in a field and entered into a "blood pact" which, as the Legion's oath provides, is necessary for a "higher" form of service. Each child­ ishly dipped a toothpick in his own blood and signed his name as a pledge that.rwhatever the plot is, it is to be loyally carried out. Following that a "colonel" revealed to Dean that he was chosen for the noble deed of killing Kingsley. For weeks, Dean said, he angled for an opportunity to shoot Kingsley, and at one time had actually chased him for several miles. On several occasions State Legion Commander Arthur Lupp and N. Ray Markland, former mayor of Highland Park, met with him to stress the importance of the assignment. Kingsley's paper opposed Markland's re-election. "My whole campaign will be ruined if you don't act quickly," Markland said to him as he handed him a blackjack. "Take this, you might need it." When the plot to murder Kingsley was revealed by Dean, six­ teen were arrested for taking part. Among them were Lupp, Markland, two factory policemen, a police officer, and several Highland Park city employees. At the time of his arrest Markland was employed as an investigator in the office of Wayne County Prosecutor McCrea and was apparently in a beautiful position to warn his fellow terrorists of any action that might be in store against them. At that very moment he was busy on a Legion flogging case.

II Two city employees testified how they were forcibly inducted into a Black Legion meeting with Markland, a city councilman and chief of police in HighlandPark, taking part in the ceremony. Firmly entrenched in city politics, the Black Legion thrived in Highland Park. , A similar assassination was attempted in Ecorse with Mayor Wi! !iam Voisine 'as the target. The squad of three men who were assigned to kill him included Dean and two others who mur­ dered Poole. . The main objectives of the Black Legion are in its anti-labor program. Its hatred of Communism stands above all else, and a Communist, according to the Black Legion, is the liberal, live­ wire trade unionist, or any person who wouldn't subscribe to its program of race hatred and religious intolerance. Marchuk Murder Mystery Cleared George Marchuk, Secretary of the Auto Workers Union in Lincoln Park, was found dead in an open lot on December 22, 1933, with a bullet in his head. He was last seen that night when he left a meeting of the Unemployment Councils, of which he was also a leader. The Auto Workers Union organized a delega­ tion which appeared before the Lincoln Park Council and charged that the murder was the work of a secret anti-labor organization. The Knights of Dearborn, which was formed only a month earlier "to promote civics and fight Communism", was named as the likely organization. Leaders of the strong K.K.K. organization in Lincoln Park were named. But it was an , appeal to the Black Legionnaires themselves. The complaints were simply filed. When the Black Legion was exposed almost three years later the case was again revived. Lincoln Park people recalled that a certain retired Detroit one- legged policeman named Isaac "Peg­ Leg" White, who had been discovered intimately connected with Black Legion activities, had threatened Marchuk and several others shortly before the murder. Others were named but at this writing nothing has been done. The big swing to the A. F. of L. automobile locals was on at that time. The Auto Workers Union had just decided to merge into the A. F. of L. and was about t 'J begin intense recruiting of Ford workers in the down-river area.

12 Bielak Taken for a Ride John Bielak, live, youthful A. F. of L. organizer in the Hudson plant was found riddled with bullets on March 15, 1934, on a road about ten miles from Monroe, Michi gan. Shortly prior to the murder Bielak led a successful stoppage for a wage increase in the metal finishing department of the Hudson plant. Shortly after .:.a t, when the company attempted to di scharge Bielak, the workr rs ill his department struck and forced his reinstatement. The Hudson local, with approximately 7,000 members, was the key automobile uni on in Detroit at that time. When Bielak kissed her goodby on the night of March 15, his widow sai d, he told her he had a date with Bill Moore, his foreman who , by the way, was an extreme reactionary in the union. Moore, police learned , was attending a Black Legion meet­ ing on that night and admitted having been the last to see Bielak alive, He was questioned and released. But this is only part of the story. Captain Ira H. Marmon of the Michigan State P ol ice disclosed the following which came to him from a prominent American Legion member, employed as an investigator (industrial spy) by the Hudson Motor Car company! AS+ool Meets the Legion Shortly before Bielak's murder three members of the Black Legion-Isaac "Peg-Leg" White, Andrew Martin (held for kid­ napping and flogging in another case) and Roy Hepner (leader in the plot to murder Kingsley ) , came to the Hudson Company with a list of five names, Bielak's among them , who they said were Communists emp loyed in the plant and should be discharged. Marmon's informant, the epy, was assigned by the comp any to investigate and trace the people associated with the named "Communists". He related how he met with the Black Legionnaires in a house. "I too am interested in combating Communism," he told them. "If you people will help me I will join your outfit." After some questioning he described how the Legionnaires donned black robes, pulled out their rev olvers, administered their oath over him, and presented him with a bullet.

13 Shortly afterward, according to the story, Bielak was tak en for a " ride" by the Black Legi on, beaten in the automobile, shot five times and thrown out on the road. His young wid ow was unable to understand what rea son anyone might have had for murdering her husband. All she kn ew about it was that "when John came home after work he was always talking about th e new batch of applications for the union that he got". The " Peg-Leg" Wh ite mentioned was found and interviewed by th e Detroit News on a farm near Lyons, Michigan. Though denying that he was connected with the Black Legion or that he knew anything of Bielak, he admitted having visited the Hudson plant and having been an official in the K.K.K. until he was " double-crossed" . ~ s k "Peg Leg", He Knows Plent y "I visited th e Hudson plant. A few yea rs ago I calle d on all the plants of Detroit", White told th e Detroit N ew" (June 2, 1936 ). " Once or twi ce I turned in a bunch of names to the Hudson Motor Car Company. How many I don't re me mbe r but th er e wer e several typewritten sheets. " "This was done ab out th e time the Comm unists made th eir big drive on Detroit, th e time of th e Dearborn riot [he means th e Ford Hunger March-C.M.]. I was with th e Citizens' Committee the n. I ca n't rem ember wha t names wer e on the list." Asked to exp lain his " Citizens' Committee" Wh ite said,

" I don't know mu ch a bout it and I don't know wh o ran it. You see we didn't op erate that way. A man just came to my house and ga ve me a list of names and aske d me to take th em to th e factories. I took some to F ord 's, some to Budd Wh eel, in fa ct to all the plants that had strikes or threats of strikes. "Others usually went with me on the calls to th e plants hut I can't remember who went along to th e Hudson plant. The names Hepner and Martin mean nothing to me. I met th ou sands of people about that time--and I never was an y good at rem embering names. " We didn't get anything out of it but th e per sonnel departments of th e plants were always glad to get information about th e Com­ munists and th ey thanked us. It was merel y a cour tesy proposition." White was not arrested, though resolutions adopted at ma ss meetings demanded his immediate arrest. Five weeks later, when at la st he was wanted for the burning of the Workers Camp, situ­ ated near Detroit, White was missing. 14 The Legion in an Electiol' Campaign

In th e, spring of 1935 Detroit labor set an example In indep en­ den t political labor action. .The Detroit Federation of Labor, Communist Party, independent unions and mo st other labor org an­ ization s joined to elect Maurice Sugar, labor ca ndida te, for Recorders Judge. It was then th at Su gar polled 63,000 votes. The final ca mpaign rally was set for March 30 ;at th e Northern Hi gh School. The Board of Education had refused to grant th e hall because " Communists will spe ak". But following a sharp struggle a liberal judge granted an injuncti on that co mpelled the board to gran t the hall. But what the Board of Educati on failed to do th rough legal means th e Bl ack Legion hoped to succeed by its own methods. But that part of the story was told more than a yea r lat er by Dean after he had alread y confessed to the P oole shooting. A meeting of th e Bl ack Legion was called on th e very ni ght of the ca mpaign rally. On e squa d was dispatched to the Workers Camp to set fire to its buildings ; the act of arson was successfully carried out that ni ght. The other sq ua d was to go to the high school mee ting. Dean and Lesli e Black, President of th e Wolverine Re­ publican Club, were to cut the electr ic li ght wires. Wh ~ n ' th e mee ting was thrown into darkness, six Legi onnai res in the audi­ ence were to throw stench bombs. Forged leaflets were also · pre­ pared , sig ned by th e Comm unis t P arty, which were to be sca ttered in the meeting 'during th e confusion. ' The plan mi scarried becau se b y mi stake Dean cut only :tl,le eme rge ncy wires. The janitor at the scho ol .on the next 'day in­ formed Sugar that eme rgency wires were found cut and gave ' h i~ a sa mp le of a bundle of the leaflets th at he Iou nd .. The leaflet showed th at th e object was 10 discredit th e CommunistParty 'and the splendid campaign for Sugar. The leaflet read as follows : : ....

" Comrades, ri se ag ai ns t th e capita listic fo rm of gove rn me n t. Throw ou t th e bosses and kill th e aggressors of th e com mo n peopl e. Are you ',', go ing to remain in th e gutter and be trampl ed up on by the capita lis ts until you are d ead? Get th em first or th ey will ge t yo u . "" "Negroes, rise ag ains t your white o ppressors. We ar e all eq ua l an d yo u sho uld have an equal cha nce with all whites. \Ve offer you th at chance. Do your part to b rin g thi s abo ut by electing Comra de Maurice

15 Sugar to th e Recorders Co urt. We will then have a chance to work from within and tear down this damnable form of governme nt. "C ommunist Party of Ame rica ."

The ob vious forger y did not prevent the Board of Education and the Hearst press from making cap ital out of it. They charged that the leaflet was actually genuine Communist propaganda. On later occasions, when th e Board refused to grflnt the schoo ls .for labor meetings the leaflet was used as an excuse.

Dean-Sugar's Neighbor Some time after the campaign for Recorder Judgeship Detroit labor considere d further steps in independent political action. Sugar was put forward as candidate for the Common Council. When Dean was searched, following the Poole murder , the she riff's aides found upon him a newspaper clipping with Sugar's pi cture upon it. Asked to explain the pi cture, Dean coldly told of having lived in an apartment of the same building where Sugar lived and that he was ordered by Commander Lupp of th e Black Legion to bomb Sugar. Records showed that Dean occupied the " part­ ment for five months. Asked why he didn't carry through the job. Dean said that he " got cold feet because too many people wou ld have been killed". When the bombing plot was given up, Lupp discussed with him the possibility of calling Sugar out " on a case" and "bumping him off". Apparently as late as May 22, 1936, the Farmer-Labor leader was still on the Legion's " bump­ off" list. The "arson squad" of the Black Legion confesse d to the burning of the farm of William Mollenhauer in Oakland Countv (P ontiac) in August, 1934. Mollenhauer was a labor sympathizer. In stead of searching for the criminals the county sheriff searched for " Red" literature in the ruins of the farm buildings. Similarly another arson sq uad confessed to the burning of the Workers Camp (the second tim e ) also located in Oakland County. They were given only six-month prison sentences.

Black Legion " Unionism"

The, black hand of the Legion al so stretched out into unions.

16 Black Legionnaires were found in the automobile, street car men's and building trades unions. They expressed the most reactionary policies wherever they were. President Frank X. Martel of the Detroit Federation of Labor made the following statement at the time he appointed a committee of five to investigate Black Legion activities in unions:

"We have wondered what has caused the friction in the labor movement of the state in the past few years. I have sensed these things when unions would withdraw suddenly.... Undoubtedly the Black Legion has been in the back of ' these things."

Undoubtedly Martel had in mind the group of officials who had withdrawn from the A. F. of L.,. the once powerful Hudson local, with 7,000 members, Pontiac local with 4,000 members and the Oldsmobile local, and had formed what became known as the Associated Automobile Workers of America. The withdrawal came suddenly, at a moment when a general strike was being discussed in the automobile industry. As independent unions the locals disintegrated and were practically wiped out. These were the strongest locals of the A. F. of L. in Detroit at a moment when the first real beginnings to unionize the industry were made. Following the Black Legion disclosure, Tice Woody, President of the Pontiac organization, revealed to the writer how he and several others in his union had joined the Black Legion on the idea that it might help labor. But when he joined he discovered that Arthur Greer, President of the Hudson local, and Richard L. Byrd, whom President Roosevelt appointed as "labor's repre­ sentative" on the defunct Automobile Labor Board, were already in the Black Legion. Add to this the fact that Greer, outstanding leader in the movement, was by his own admission connected with the Department of Justice at one time, and only a year before the Hudson local came into existence was chairman of the com­ pany union's election committee, then it isn't hard to see that these were people who deliberately plotted to destroy the unions. They certainly did a thorough job. Strikebreaking was an important phase of the Legion's activity. The organization in Toledo, Ohio, tried to break the Chevrolet strike in May, 1935. Evidence came to light that General Motors'

17 ~ge:nt s pl~~~d " cO'I~h'd ~I;C ~ ' on what the 'Black Legion mi j ht duo Ol;l y ' the ' spj ~ h d i (( solidarity or' the wo~ker s ~n'd ni ght-and.da~' pi~ketin g ' foii edthe 'p lans of the Legion. .. In like ill'anner'the Legion did its part in the Metor Produ cts strike. The ' hom ~'s ' of at least a half-dozen strikers were bombed , and many strikers wer e threatened if they didn't stay awa y fr om the pi cket line. " No on e can doubt that bombings that took pl ace durin r the Motor Products 'strike wer e don e by the Black Legion," sai d Lloyd Jones, one of the strike leader s. " In fact some of our strikers never dared go home. at night with out a bodyguard or a fast ca r and a good gun." . Jones disclosed that a sec ret group call ing itself the " Invisible E,ye of Labor", out to drive the Negroes and Communists out of unions, was op erating in the Motor Products plant. So, in Ohio, during a bitterly fou ght onion strike, near Lim a. in 1935, the Black Legion attracted first public attention there. The strike leader was kidnapped and beaten as wer e many strikers. In July, 1935, the sta te legislative committee held a hear­ ing at which the activities of the Black Legion wer e disclo sed . ~Iary Hirley, the stenogra phe r who took notes of the heariug. was met on the steps of the State House by four men who de­ Inanded to know what she did with the not es and threatened her .i.f she didn't destroy them. Killing Negroes for a "Thrill" The Black Legion outd id itself in the killing of the 42-year­ old eg ro hod carrie r, Silas Colem an. On Ma y 25, 1935 , when .Colerna n's bod y was found in a swamp near Pinckney, Mich ., rid dled with bullets, Livin gstone County poli ce ga ve it up as an unsolved crime.. More than a year later Dean told a story which fo~ wanton viciousness is unparalleled in the Legion's lon g list of crimes . Dean \~ a s not -~ l on c to tell it. Another one of the Black Legion killers, JamesHoy Lorance, retold it in every detail and bit by Lit others brought evidence that established Deun's story beyond a shadow of doubt.. , Here is part of the story in Dean's own words:

18 "I was working for the P ublic Lighting Commission at th e Mis - ·. tersky.. Power Station and Harvey Davis came in One day and we were talking and he wanted to know if I could get a colored gu y for him. " He said th ey were going to hav e a party ou t to th e lak e and th ey wanted to hav e a little exc itement. Th ey wanted to · have a colored fell ow, didn't make any difference whe re he came from as long as he was black. They wanted to tak e hi m out and kill him. Colonel Davi s said he wanted to kn ow wha t it felt like to shoo t a Negro. " So I got hold of Charlie Rouse and Charlie said he had just th e right man, he had one working for him, so we mad e arrange­ ments with Davis. . .."

Dean related how Col eman was lured to go for a ride with the two men on that fateful Saturday night, on the promise that he would be taken to his boss contractor at a summer cottage to coll ect $18 in back wages that was coming to him.

" We went to th e cottage and I wen t to th e back door and th ere was Harvey Davi s and his wife, Jack Bannerman and his wife, Ervin Lee and his wife and Roy Lorance and hi s wif e, sitt ing at the table having a party drinking beer and liquor. " Davis called Ervin Lee and Roy Lor an ce and J ack Bannerman into th e room and says to th em to get th eir guns and see that they are load ed . 'We'v e got him', he says."

Co leman was then tak en out to a swamp near Pinckney. Dean continued :

" Whe n th e colored fellow came round to th e rear of th e car, wondering to see what we was doi ng around there, and j ust as he came round and faced up , Davis took his .38 and he shot first and th en th e others sho t. The colored fello w went to say something and the bullet see med to pi erce his lu ng or some thing and h e couldn' t talk and he mad e a kind of 'a ·h-h· h' gurgle in his throat or something kind of so. " He run like a deer down th er e and when he starte d running th ey say 'Don' t let him get away' and ran after him emptying th eir guns after him. " We went back to our cars and drove ba ck to th e cott age. They gave Charlie Rouse and I a sho t of liquor and a bottle of beer and we drove ba ck to Detroit but th ey stayed th ere and continued the party."

At thi s writing both Lorance and Dean came out with the

19 sensational story that if the Ford-owned mill pond in the vicin­ ity of the marsh where Coleman's body was found, would be drained seven more bodies of "thrill" killing victims would be found. Bacteria for the Legion's Enemies But the Black Legion shattered its own record of sadism and murder when it plotted to inject typhoid germs into milk and cheese distributed through Jewish markets. As fantastic as this scheme may appear, it was confessed by William Guthrie, d Black Legion "intelligence man ", and Charles T. McCutcheon , the chemist and bacteriologist in the case, who was employed in the milk inspection department of the Detroit Department of Health. Arthur Lupp, Michigan state commander of the Black Legion, worked close to McCutcheo~ as a public milk inspector. Guthrie told how Lupp and McCutcheon came to his home and inspected the possibility of breeding typhoid germs in his base­ ment. McCutcheon, when questioned in the Prosecutor's office, coldly gave an account of how the Legion planned to destroy "its enemies". Lupp discussed with him the possibility of making poisoned "death needles" that might be jammed into people in a crowd. He was interested in a "cyanide gas" that could be in­ jected into a room through a keyhole. Much thought was also given to a small bomb "the size of a cigarette" that could blow up an automobile. Lupp was also interested in the manufacture of stench and explosive bombs. When Detroit health authorities announced McCutcheon's dis­ charge for keeping to himself this plot for more than a year, they also revealed that McCutcheon for some unexplained reason engaged in bacteriological experiments at the city laboratory. This was not in line with his duty. McCutcheon pleaded that he was continually shadowed by the terrorists and warned that if the plot was ever revealed it would be all over with him. On February 16, -1935, James Armour, a Negro steel worker, was suddenly shot as he walked home at night. All he could remember is that three men jumped out of the dark and fired. He was in critical condition for several months. A year and a half later Dean told the story: 20 "We went to Ecorse to look for Clarence Oliver [Negro cam­ paign worker for Mayor Voisine of Ecorse, also a Legion target] but couldn't find him any place. Well, Rouse and Davis and me were driving back through Ecorse to Detroit and we saw this guy [Armour) walking along. Davis said, 'I want to kill a nigger'. We stopped th e car and Davis fired one shot at him. He fell and we left."

Armour was not known to any of the Legion party, but had just happened to come along when the " colonel" felt the urge to kill. The above are only a few of the cases that have become known publicly. Who can doubt that a series of at least a half-dozen bombings of labor halls; of the Modern Book Shop, in Detroit, an outlet for labor literature; and other attacks upon the working class were the work of the Black Legion?

71 ' ...... ~ --ftII:DBOOU...... ftoO'tD"'OPT. ~ .~AM"~ lllIo1utrint-mtpub1tt~ 1!jtagur ..... 0ALLAJiLUf. ~ ~ AII'I'SDa • • ~n-- )UlI UNION GUlUIDIAN BUD.J>ING -...oaa llETROIT 'MtCWGAN L J B:UoClL~ ~. • • A.IftIER!lOPl ..... ~~y e. P. maaoP o. '""""""" r. BOO'" APril · 30, 1336. HAltS!' S. KAaZ' AJtTIrtJJ' P. IICClUI nDI'D L Ill'UODT W.o. ROBIJrIiOII ...... aollDT ...... ­__

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W Co JLOBIDOJI, ~ annual meeting in the Tindla'er 180pl e. on the P a. .u.a.umz:JL A, II COLblDOI' corner or West Laf ayette an d Wat8~an avenues, 1.L01"D"~~ .' .J Prr=1J08l" A J RAT t or tne purpose ot electing d l re ct~ rs ! Thi' FR.unt in!AlJ.OCN nuJQ[ 'lo'ORD Dt wil l. be a .cloaad meeting to r membera only. """R O-; LO..RA.NC:E= y' DVDf D Ia'V We are encl os i ng a pet i t io n or DtLECJ...."'& ~lbu r JUAP.T Z. ltARX. CA ~ ; : M. Bruc ker tor .enato!" . Pleass fill out US W AKPI:iUJO:S C ~ tro Z: CAC"..lUTT KA no' ARD C;~1I 0" same and ret urn as soon ae poas,blG or turn it • ' MYS H.om !: RIO~ .· om~ 5 VDlCvrr V i n lII. t t he meet i na..on Llay 11th. : ..Jh:'i:.lI you may also ...·...LT Ol PA1UtDl.

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Lett er on its own stationery sent by th e Wol verine R epublican Club. The club address is th e office of a prominent R epublican, Harry Z. Marx. Check marks indicate th e five Legionnaires who took part in the murder of Charles Poole. Man y of the officers nam ed were arrest ed for oth er crimes. IV. THE LEGION'S POLITICAL FRONT If yo u th ink that th e Bl ack Legion was j us t a peculiar fa ncy of free lan cers, yo u have ano ther guess coming. It is intimatel y con­ nec ted with th e m ost reactionary political circles. From all the evide nce that came to light th e Black Legion was undoubtedl y a creation of Republicans. Every political link co n firms thi s, and th ere are many. The first Bl ack Legi on organi zatio n un covered was th e W 01­ verine Republican Cl ub. Fi ve of the group that took part in th e murder of Charles P oole were officers of th e cl ub. The president of th e Wolverine and severa l othe rs wh o had their names on th e cl ub's statio nery as officers were arrested for taking part in th e Kingsley and Voisine political assassination p lot s. It is th e Wo lverine Club that spons ore d the ca nd idac y of former Go vern or Wilb er M. Brucker, for Un ited States Sen ate on the Republican ticket in the 1936 elec tio n. Brucker has alw ays been the spokes man of the m ost rea cti on ary circles in Michigan, and is one of th e most vicio us Red-baiters in th e co untry. Brucker was one of the m ain sponsors of th e infa mous Dunckel -Bald win anti­ labor gag bill in the 1935 legislature of Mich ig an. Hi s main base of operatio n is co mmittees of the American Legi on on subversive ac tiv ities.Brucker was also the p rime m over of a co nfe re nce of patri oteers hel d in Grand Rapids in October, 1935, to form the "Constitution Protecti ve Lea gue, In c." . Accordin g to th e p rogram of th e organiza tion p rinted in a fo lde r, it is to work under cl ose guidance of th e Mi chigan Manufacturers Associ at ion , and is to coord inate all anti-labor organizatio ns in Michigan. A list of activities for th ese co nstitution-savers includes spying upon labor, co un tering "agitators" and forming sq uads to break up meetings and dem on strations. Black Legion Gets Maiden Speech Brucker delivered his maiden cam paign speech before a mass meeting arranged by th e W ol verine Republican Club. A letter se nt to all members on the cl ub's own statione ry for the meeting on May 11 stated: 23 "We are enclosing a petition of Wilber M. Brucker for Senator. Please fiIl out same and return as soon as possible or turn in at meeting on May II, where you may also obtain additional copies if needed." (See Pla te 1 on p . 22.)

Sponsors for the Brucker mass meeting under the Wolverine's auspices were other political notorieties. Among them was re­ ported Police Commissioner Heinrich Pickert. In fact, from several sources it was charged that the commissioner is a member of the Black Legion. That, of course, would not be a surprise, as Pickert's police department has carried on activities of a Black Legion character. Police have shot down people on mere suspi­ cion of crime, suppressed civil rights, and actually encouraged bombings and similar outrages against labor. The fact is that in the three years that the Black Legion carried on its nefarious work it was not hindered by the police department. Worked Hard for G.O.P. Among the speakers who appeared under the Black Legion's auspices were also Judge L. Eugene Sharp and Gomer Krise, Republican candidate for Wayne County Prosecutor. Both ar e notorious reactionaries. Of course, these individuals hastened to shake themselves loose from the Legion when the lid blew off. But the jailed terrorists rather boasted of having been in the com­ pany of such "big men". " I worked hard for Wilber M. Brucker and Governor Fitzgerald. When Brucker spoke at our meeting recently I handed him ten nominating petitions that I circulated and filled," said John Bannerman, one of Poole's killers. (Detroit News, May 29, 1935). " I had a sort of hankering to get into politics and so I went to this Wolverine Republican Club one night," said young Paul Edwards, who al so helped to kill Poole. "Some of the biggest men in this state were there. Mr. Brucker made a speech and I said to myself,'if this organization is good enough for Mr. Brucker and those other big men it's goo d enough for me'." (Ibid. ) " I just thought it was a Republican Club. I joined the night Brucker spoke," said Edga r J. Baldwin, an other one involved in the Poole case. (Ibid. ) 24 The Brucker type is the front for the Black Legion. They are the star recruiters and serve to give the impression that the organ­ ization has "strong backing".

A Judge in Good Company

Judge Sharp's link was established in several other instances. His clerk and ardent campaigner was L. J. Black, a leading figure in the Kingsley murder plot, and president of the Wolverine Club. -It was Sharp who endorsed a pistol permit for Arthur Lupp, the Legion's state commander. It was the Black Legion gang that campaigned for Sharp in 1935. - Harry Z. Marx, prominent Republican attorney, is a director of the cl ub and chairman of its Delegates Committee. His office was designated as the club's headquarters on its stationery. This is the very same Marx who was head of the "Americanization Com­ mittee" of the American Legion in 1934. In 1935 when three Black Legionnaires were arrested near Adrian, Michigan, with black hoods, pistols and rope in their car, it was Marx and V. H. ­ Effinger, of Lima, Ohio, National Head of the Black Legion, who rushed to the office of the State Police and pleaded that the men be dismissed. His law partner, Marion Leacock, is chairman of the Resolutions Committee of the Wolverine. Significantly, on the very day that the Black Legion expose blew out, Marx and Leacock were in City Hall representing Police Commissioner Pickert in a hearing at which labor groups demanded the corn­ missioner's ouster. (Detroit Times, May 22.) In the spring of 1935, Marx was the "Red-baiting" candidate for Recorder Judge. It was during that period that the Black Legion tried to break up the campaign rallies of Maurice Sugar, labor candidate, and issued forged leaflets to discredit his campaign. State Employment Director in the Fold Among the Republican state officials to be linked with the Black Legion is M. Wesson Dickinson, Superintendent of Private Em­ ployment Bureaus in the State of Michigan. He was formerly manager of the Secretary of State's office. In addition to having 25 been named as an insid er in Black Legi on affairs, Dickinson was also one of tho se to endo rse Lupp's pi stol permit. Though the investi gati on into the Black Legion was veiled in secrecy the nam es of a lar ge number of lesser political lights were revea led to be on the Legion's roster. The names of Fr ank D arin, former state representat ive fro m Ri ver Rouge, Oren A; J ohnson, formerly ass istant p rosecutor , J. J. Pettijohn , Ecorse Village trustee, Arthur A. Moo re, ex-president of Melvinda le and a former state legislator, and others appea red on the Wolverine's list of offic ials. IL sho uld be noted th at there are man y " formers". 'The Black Legion is a means for a come-bac k to man y a discr edited .and defeated politician. In Oakland County (Pontiac) where the Black Legion is strong, County P rosecutor Da vid C. Pence admitted havin g join ed the Bullet Club, a Black Legi on affi liate. "I have never had any .complaint about the acti vities of the so-calle d Bullet Club during the time I have been in office," said Pence several days before he .admitted his own membership. (Detroit News, May 23, 1935. ) References to mor e govern ment officials who ar e linked to the Black Legion or ha ve taken part in its terror acts will be found .in other parts of thi s pamphlet. McCrea Also a Joiner But the Republican Party is not the sole Black Legion nest. .At the height of the Black Legion exposure, with Wayne County .Prosecutor Duncan McCrea reg arded as the great hop e for a .elean-up, the Detroit Tim es suddenly ca me out with a photostat .of an application card for Black Legion membership signed by McCrea. While it is true th at the Detroit Times found thi s to be a .convenient way to sta ll progress in the expos ure, which was gain­ ing rapid momentum, McCrea was unable to make a flat deni al. .He admitte d that he " might have signed" when he was ca mpaign­ ing and as is customa ry with politician s was " just a join er". The .applicatio n cards for the Black Legion wer e camo uflage d as Auto­ .mobile Insuran ce Cards, and McCrea claimed th at he could not .have done so .knowingly. But so was McCrea's office a Bla ck Legi on nest. Former Mayor M arkland of Highland Park was em ployed as one of his investi-

26 gators. Another investigator was an official in th e Klan. Still an ­ othe r one, who according to the card sponsored McCrea's mem­ bership, was discharged as investigator. In such manner the tentacles of th e Black Legion reach ed out into every possible po litical hole. Black hand methods and assas­ sination plots built up a power for th e hidden ma sters who direct th e Legion. Politicians Seized W ith J iHers The sudde n explosion that rapidly lifted hoods fr om th e fa ces of many prominent politicians threw Mi chigan political circles into cons te rn ation. They were jittery, as th ey did not know what the next new spaper editions mi ght bring. Governor Fitzgerald was in a fright. If th e exp ose continue d fr eely, hi s whole adm inis­ tration was threaten ed with a major scan dal. Mi chigan manufacturers provided for such occ as ions-a one­ man secre t grand jury. This sche me was put through severa l years ago supp osedly for "econo my". It wo rks as follows: when a sca ndal breaks out a judge is picked to co n duct the entire investig ation. In maj or cases the Attorney General ass ists him. No one is permitted to atte n d hearings. After witnesses p resent what th ey know to the judge th ey are legally bound to seal their lips on pain of being jailed for con tempt of co urt, by the same judge. The "grand" jury alone decides how lon g th e in vesti ga­ tio n sh ould d rag. It is an excellent sche me to shut th e mouths of the very on es who have much to tell. The Attorney Gen eral who took ove r th e investigation on a sta te­ wide scale and actually subo rd inated all county prosecutors was David H. Crowley, who was attorney for the Fi sh er Bod y division of General Motors, when he wa s ap poin ted by Governor Fitz­ ge rald. The one -man grand jury is Judge James E. Cheno t, whose main elec tion sup port came fr om the Ford-controlled " down­ rive r" ga ng that was so cl osel y linked to th e Black Legion. " I ha ve control of th e proceedings in thi s cou rt. An yon e who violates th e sec recy of this gran d jury will go to jail." Th ese were Cheno t's first words as he began to call witnesses. Quickly Chenot subpoenae d Captain Ira H. Marmon, of th e State P olice wh o, as we have see n earl ier in this pamphlet, came

27 out with the most startling revelations. He disclosed the Bielak story, and other distinct anti-labor cases. It was he who charged publicly that at least 50 un explained "suicides" were Legi on mur­ ders. He promised more startling discoveries. Then he testified before the judge and was comp letely silenced. In that way, one a fter another were silence d the chief informers and inv estigators. So also was the press practically silenced. The full story of the Bl ack Legi on , its long trail of unpublished crimes , and the identity of the nam es of over 500 Black Legi on members that the police compiled, as well as the political figures among them, were safely stored away with the Judge and the Attorney General. Both are trusted servants of the very same people who brought the Black Legion into being. Federal Investigation Shelved A cry went up for a fed eral inv estigation. All labor and liberal organizations joined. The local Democrats, including the Prose­ cutor, joined in the call for a federal inv estigation. Demands for a federal inquiry poured into Washington from all sid es. It was freely charged that the Michigan Republicans were only trying to suppress evidence against th emselves. Meanwhile, a national menace to democratic rights continued to grow. Farmer-Labor Senator Benson introduced a resolution in the Senate calling for a federal investigation into the activities of the Black Legion as well as of all similar organizations through ­ out the country. But his resolution remained buried in committees as both Houses adjourned and the Congressm en and Senators rushed home to dive into the election ca mpaign. Meanwhile, safe from a fed eral committee, the Michigan Republicans proceeded to hu sh up the entire issue. Why the Democratic-controlled legislature and President Roose­ velt were so anxious to shelve the issue will become cl ear as the pamphlet progresses.

28 v. THE ROOTS OF THE BLACK LEGIO N

Where are the roots of the Black Legion? The Black Legion began its activities some time in 1932, though members of the organization trace their history to some years earlier. It appears that there was a split in the Ku Klux Klan of Michigan, Ohio and Indiana. The Klans in these states were at one time among the strongest in the country. A strong base for the Klan was the mass migration of Southerners to the North, espe­ cially to the automobile centers. Whatever the direct cause might have been for the development of the rift in the K.K.K., it was about the end of 1932 that the Michigan manufacturers took advantage of the opposition to the Grand Dragons to bring into existence the Black Legion. The new organization was to be an "up-to-date" outfit conforming to the requirements of the Northern manufacturers. The whi te robes were dyed black, and a strictly disciplined military structure was set up. The old program of race hatred and religious intolerance was retained, but now the main emphasis was to be on the anti-labor or, as they termed it, the anti-Communist aspect of the program. The Black Legion promised to be a "real" night-riding organiza­ tion and to promote more aggressive terror action.

The Rising Counter Tide The "new line" in night-riding was introduced in 1932-33, shortly after the Briggs strike (January, 1933), and the historic Ford Hunger March (March, 1932). This march marked a turn in the development of the working class movement of Michigan­ the country's foremost open-shop region. It marked the shattering of the Ford illusion. All the strength of the Ford and Detroit police was thrown against the marchers, who were on their way to "King Henry" to ask for bread or jobs. A shower of bullets was poured into the mass of workers. Five were killed and scores were wounded. This aroused unprecedented mass indignation among the workers and 29 people generally. The worker s c resisted the reign of terror th at followed. This swin g upward climaxed in a May Day dem onstra­ tion of over 50,000 in Detroit. Coupled with thi s, there began a rap id influ x of automobile workers int o the newl y-created feder al uni ons of the A. F. of L. This was stimulated by the promi se of collective bargaining in the ju st introduced N.R.A. In such traditional open-shop cities as Flint, 11,000 workers flocked to the unions. Similarly, they jo ined in Pontiac, Detroit and other pl aces. Strikes of auto work­ en; occur red more frequently. Th e manufacturers were seriously wo~ r ie d. Michigan lab or was at last raising its head. . The Liberty League Takes the Helm The Black Legion was one of the mean s that the manufactu rers adva nced to co unter the sweep towards uni oni sm. It was designed to be a netw ork of strike-breaking terror bands, spies and killers of activ e union workers. From then on their instructions were to come not fr om a Grand Dragon in Georgia but fr om .the North­ ern kin gs of ind ustry-General Motors, Ford, Chrysler, du Pont , United States Steel-the very top circle of exploiters of the Ameri can peo ple ~ ho today are combined in the Liberty League. Th ey spea k th rough the Hearst newsp apers. Th eir political ex­ pression is the Republican P arty and their candi da te is Alf red Landon. The poison fr uits of the Black Legion bl ossomed forth first in Michi gan beca use that reg ion furnished the most fertile gro und for it. Th e state is traditi onally open-shop. Th e workers had as yet learned little of the power of solida rity, and had little in­ fluence on the political life of the state. Most of the auto cities are like huge compa ny towns. Industrial sp ies hound the workers at every turn . Civil rights are unceremoniously viola ted. The impotency of craft unions in such a highly organized mass pro­ ducti on industry as automobile put unionism in a bad light to many wor kers . Michigan was a "prosperity paradise" during the Coolidge -Hoover dynasty. It was in such a field that Hear st's Detroit Times, and -th ose newsp ap ers that are almos t do wn to its level and Father Cha rles Coughlin planted their poisonous seeds - Ihe seeds of Red-baiting and fal se Americanism. .

30 Ihre(: Years of Training The Bl ack Legi on was not th e fir st organization of its kind to rise in th e U nite d States. But it ha s developed further th an an y of its pred ecessors to play its evil role. F or at least th ree years witho ut interruption it trained its terror bands. W ith th e financi al an d p ol iti cal backing of th e indust ri al ists, and brigades of moron s and sadis ts f or an active core, the organ iza tio n laid a foundation fo r itse lf. Its roots already began to stretc h out to parts outside o f Michigan. T hey sp read easies t in those re3ions where the worke rs were unorganized and where th e Liberty Leagu e-H earst­ Re publican eomh ination en joyed strongest sup port. VI. THE BLACK LEGION AND LAW AND ORDER Proud of his "G-Men" whose war on criminals has been pub­ licized, filmed and broadcast throughout the length and breadth of the country the American citizen wonders: is it possible that our "G-Men" knew nothing of the Black Legion and its three-year crime record? How could such a large organization escape the Department of Justice for so long a time? The truth is that federal and local police authorities knew all about the Black Legion since 1934. The fact is that they were informed at least six different times. When Arlington Jones, Highland Park city employee, related to the city council the Black Legion activities of several officials of that city who had forced him to join the organization in 1934, he said:

"I made reports of the threats to the Highland Park mayor, to Arthur Kingsley [Highland Park publisher] to the prosecutor's office, and to the Federal Department of Justice men, but nothing was done." (Detroit News , July 3.)

Mayor Joseph M. Halkett of Highland Park confirmed at the very same hearing that Jones had told him in 1934 how he was forcibly initiated into the Black Legion, with Highland Park Councilman Wilson holding a gun at his ribs, and Chief of Police Sparling and former Mayor Markland present. " I couldn't conceive of men in public life doing the things he said were done," was the mayor's only excuse for doing nothing. Pontiac Stirred in 1934 In Pontiac, where General Motors controls all politics, the Black Legion organization elected most of the city administration in 1934. Its immediate step following election was to unseat the old police chief from power, because Black Legionnaires under him had been promised promotions after election. A public hearing took place on the issue during the winter of 1934.-35. Black Legion 32 membership of several police officers and county officials was ex posed, It was the main topic in Pontiac for months. But nothing came of th e whole affair. The police head eventually had to resign. Ohio Farmer Told "G-Men" William M. Smith, a farmer of Lima, Ohio, said he had told police and a "C-Man" eigh t months before the Poole. murder, how he and several others were "taken for a ride" to be initiated in the Black Legion. He was released after refusing to accept the oath, but was warned that he would be " finis hed in 24 hours" if he "sq uawked". Sheriff W. E. Kelley of that district state d that he had also asked th e Department of Justice to investigate the Black Legion and th e threats to Smith in September, 1935, but that nothing came of that.

The "Colonel" Arrested in 1935 On August 12, 1935, nine months before the Poole murder, Detroit police acted on a tip by Albert Bates, a Ford employee wh om th e Black Legion had marked for initiation. They arrested three men-Harvey Davis, Lowell Rushing and Earl Mullen. The men had with them black robes, hoods adorned with sk ull and cr oss-bones , several pistols, rope, adhesive tape and Black Legion literature. The arrest was reported under a headline across the front page of the Detroit Times on August 13. The Davis arrested is the same " Colonel" Davis who directed th e Poole killing. Rushing was also one of th e killers. From as much as leaked out through the Detroit Times, it is evident that police knew enough of the hooded organization to warrant serious action. But for som e "strange" reason the three were released. The fa ct that, as th e Times reported, Detective H arry Mikuliak, directo r of th e " Red sq uad" , was investigator in th e case may th row so me light on the reason.

Federal Men on Case in 1935 Ten days later, on August 22, three other Detroit men were arrested near Adrian, Mi ch. They were Elsworth Shinneberry, Roy- L. Hepner an d Andrew Martin. Then, too, police came upon

33 the scene when a ceremony of the Legion was about to begin . Again police found black hoods, knives and guns. These, th e prisoners explained, according to the Detroit Times of Aug. · 23, were for "protection against Communists". The Times story mentioned the Black Legion by name and that "following the arrests a fed eral investigator was sent here from Detroit". The Detroit Times al so carried the information that Harry Z. Marx, who has already been introduced in this pamphlet as Director of the Wo lverine Club and whose office is the headquarters of th at Black Legion organization, appeared as law yer for th e three. Sub­ sequently, th e men were rel ea sed, becau se a jUQ3e said " the search was performed without a warrant". \Vho are th e men that were rel eas ed? Hepner was arrested on cha rge s of being the " Colonel" in th e Kingsley murder pl ot. He was also director of one burning of the Worker s' Camp. He pner will also be rem ember ed as one of three gentlemen who came to the Hudson Company to demand the di scharge of John Biela k. Ma rtin was one of tho se arrested for directing a flogging and kidnapping ex ped ition. This Martin was another one of th e three who visited the Hudson Company. Sma ll wonder, then, that the Black terrorists flourished. Finally, at a moment when the eyes of the entire country were on the horrors di scl osed in Michigan, Attorney Gen eral Hom er S. Cummings unblushingl y issued a statem ent in whi ch he ad­ mitted that he " had kn own of the Black Legion for ab out a year" but took no acti on becau se " no federal law was violated ". This was Cummings' an swer to th ousands of telegrams and letter s from every part of the country call ing for federal action against th e Bla ck Legion. Similarly Cong ress ad journed and ignored the Benson resol uti on. Yet no resolutions or tel egrams are required to get the f orces of the govern ment to chase after a Dillinger. The Black Legion's already known criminal record put in the shade the acts of a hundred Dillingers. But what is still more serious, the Black Legion organizes the forces that are threatening the very ex istence of the United States as a repub lic. They are undercover Storm Troopers! 34 VII. A NATIONAL MENACE T he Black Legion is no t a purel y Mic higan phen omen on. It is a nation al men ace and threaten s th e freedom of every American. .Ylichigan, much cu ltiva ted by reaction, on ly bore the first Iruits of Black Legi onism. The real p arent of th e Black Legi on is the Li berty League, and that organiza tio n is nation wide. The Bl ack Le gi on spawns from th e Red-baiting . and false Americanism which are poured out daily through Hearst new s­ pape rs, Coug h lin broadca sts, magazines such as Liberty, and film s such as " Red Salute". This is a net work th at reach es into eve ry town and hamlet. The Republican Party has es pecia lly taken to supporting orga nizatio ns such as th e Black Legi on , and as a result has given a new lea se of life to many outfits with a sim il ar program that ope ra te in other sta tes. Like Nazis-Like Legion T he Black Legi on resembles cl osel y th e typ e of organi za tio n upon which fasci sm rode into p ower in Ge rm any . The Nazi p ro gram was al so founded on a war agains t Co mm unists, Ca tho­ lics, Jews, and othe r r aces a nd nation alities. Di visi on of the p eo-. ple on r eligi ous or r aci al lines was necessa r y if resi stance was to be b ro ke n down to a fascist di ct at orship of the ind us tria lists and bankers. The Black Legion's acts of murder, burning of workers' ca mps.. bo mbi ng of labor in stitutions, floggings, an d anti-labor p r ovoca­ tion s a re th e American counterpar t to th e acts of th e Nazi Storm Troopers. The Nazis, to o, sent sq uads and " triggermen" to lie in wait in some dark alley for a labor organizer ; or to cra wl up to the horne of a Communist , Socialist , Catholic or Jew, in th e dead of n ight for an a rson job. They employed th e sa me co war dly, sne.iky method s. The Na zis, like th e Black Legion , att rac ted with th eir appeal an eleme nt of m oron s and various types of degenerates. Those who 35 could not think for themselves but allowed themselves to be impressed as blind dupes, the cowardly, sadist types, were candi­ dates for the Nazis, as for the Legion. A common performance in the Black Legion is to tie the victim to a tree iu a position for a whipping, while black-robed knights of "Americanism" form a circle to delight in the show. They recruit the type that will jump at a chance to take part in a "necktie party". Like the Nazis, the Black Legion has a military set-up. Each member is' required to obtain arms. In fact, recruiting is con­ centrated among armed individuals-policemen, prison guards, rifle club members, sheriffs, National Guard officers, and various other police officials. If given an opportunity to develop further, the Black Legion can advance to as strong a position as the Nazis held before they seized power, when they broke up workers' demonstrations and picket lines and came down like vandals upon workers' neighbor. hoods. Its propaganda can confuse masses of the least experi­ enced workers. Why No Federal Action1 Why doesn't the federal government take action? President Roosevelt has declared repeatedly that he opposes fascism. Why didn't the Democratic-controlled Congress and Senate pass the Benson resolution for a federal investigation? The answer is clear. If the investigation were carried beyond Michigan it would reach into the Southern states where the K.K.K. is strong and where Roosevelt has his main base of support. Arising during an election year, the issue was simply shelved. For that reason, United States Attorney General Cummings stated that "no federal laws were violated", despite the over­ whelming evidence that the organization operated in several states and that its national headquarters was located in Ohio. White-Robed Lynchers Vote Democratic While trying to win the support of the workers and farmers with high-sounding phrases against fasci~m ' and "autocracy", Roosevelt will not take a single step against his white-robed lynch­ ers in the South. This is why, though the Department of Justice

36 admitted that it kn ew of th e Black Legi on for over a year, not a move was m ade So much as to inform the p eople of Michigan of th e g reat danger. The murder of Pool e, and other murders th at have been co m mitted since th at time, might have been forestalled . The acts of th e Black Legion were n ot th e first test th at co n­ fronted th e Roosevelt administ ration. The issue was dod ged whe n p olicemen and Klansmen of T ampa, of th e Democratic state of F lo rida, kidnaped and flogged several So cialists. The leader, J oseph Shoemaker, was flogged to death.Ap peals to th e Presi ­ dent brought no federal action. In the state of Arkansas, wh ere Democrats rei gn sup reme, sharecroppers are kidnaped, beaten and run out of re gions by organized vigilantes. Appeals to the President are cold-shoul­ dered. General Hugh Johnson said he spoke in the name of th e president when he openly,in cited Ca lifo rn ia vig ilantes to attack the striking marine workers. [ Sim ilarly, in Alabama, th e nine Scottsb oro bo ys are held for exec ution by a Democratic state government. Most lynchings tak e place in states wh ere Roosev elt's party is in p ower. Governor Earle of Pennsylvania and othe r prominent Dem ocrats issu e sta te­ ments abo ut the Black Legi on being Republican, but th ey cl ose their eyes to th eir own back yar ds. It is not th e Roo sevelt government th at will turn back the fascist terrorists, but the organized forces of th e work ers, farmers and co mmon p eople themsel ves. Such organized ex p ressio n is .the ri sing Farmer-Labor P a rt y and th e sweep ing movem ent toward in d us trial unionism.

37 VIII. FALSE AMERICANISM- ITS NEW HOOD We have seen the work of the Black Legion. We have seen th at it is an organization whose existence can under no circum­ stances be justified or tol erated. An organization that murders innocent people, that moves about secretly in the dark with hooded l obes, that is compelled to shanghai its members and retain them by threat of assassination-such an org anization is repugnant to everything that is progressive and genuinely American. Yet there are those who, though not daring openly to fa vor the Black Legion because of the tremendous sentiment that has been aroused against it, have nevertheless found a way to defend it under cover, because they see in the Black Legion the very type of fascist organization that they themselves are aiming to establish. The cover under which they shamelessly defend this band of terrorists is false Americanism. These elements used every possible trick to play down the exposure of the Black Legion. . They immediately tagged it a " cult". The aim was to picture the Legion as a sort of strange creation to be classed with Voodoos or some other peculiar worshipers. When this fail ed, they quickl y swung over to the " old stand-by"- the Black Legion is against Communism. First in this sinister game are the debased newspapers of William Randolph Hearst, who voices the sentiment of ever y reactionary and would-be fascist. The Detroit Times was the vanguard in this. Waiting until publicity on th e Black Legion ' subsided, the Times suddenly jumped out with an eight column head over quotations from a sermon by a Reverend Savage of Pontiac, who was linked with the Black Legion early in the investigation. Parts of the sermon reported were as foll ows : Black Legion G ospel "Amer ican pa triots should org anize to defy the terrib le dan ger of Communism. As a res ult of th e feeling th at is being cleverly stirred by Communists , every anti-Communist is being eyed suspiciously as a member of th e Black Legion. " Innoce nt men are in jail , cour ageo us men are bein g fired fr om 38 the police for ce, and an intelligent organization th at was doing what the government was failing to do ha s been di srupted. " A group of men who wanted to fight what the P ope of the Roman Catholic Ch urc h calls th e 'worl d's greatest danger' found th em selves mixed with oth ers who wanted to fight othe r nationalities and other religions. "Now why do so many citizens feel calle d upon (0 un ite with such an organization? Do you realize that since Miss P erkins has been Secretary of Labor there have not been deportations of ali en agi ­ tators? And why should she, when the govern ment supports Com­ monwealth College, a Communist training school at Mena, Arkansas? "Earl Browder, head of the Communist Party, in a platform given out last Sunday, advocates war and revolution [!! I. This same Earl Browder is also vice-president of the League Against War and Fascism." (Detroit Times, July 6, 1936. ) Reverend Frank Norris, the notorious tabernacle Red-baiter, who is often publicized by the Hearst papers, delivered a similar sermon on the following Sunday in Detroit. G ospel of the Manufa ctu re rs But those were not the expressions of only these preachers of Black Legion gospel. Their sermons are the voice of the Michigan Manufacturers' Association. The line for their sermons was pub­ lished over a month earlier, on the very week that the Black Legion took the headlines. The author is one Jacob Spolansky, a White-Guard Russian, notorious as an industrial spy organizer and an "expert" against Communists, employed by the Michigan Manufacturers' Association at that time. Significantly, it was during the week that the Black Legion was exposed that Spolansky found it opportune to issue a newspaper called The Argus. The paper, full of mysterious advertisements obviously serving only as receipts for donations from manufacturers, was devoted to defending the Black Legion. It was di stributed among factory workers in large numbers. The Black Legionnaires behind the bars did their part to help their defenders. They issued repeated statements against Com­ munism and swore over and over that they were primarily an anti-Communist organization. Many claimed that they had been deceived as to the other parts of the Legion's program. "Last Refuge of a Scoundrel" The old adage that " P atriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel " 39 applies nowhere more strongly than to the defenders of the Bla ck Legion. Their argument is that the Communists are the ones who are tr yin g to upset the American Constitution. Therefore th e vilest crime is justified in order to "sav e the Constitution". It should also be pointed out that the Legion gets its definition of a Communist from the vil e Hearst papers. By Communists they mean the labor and progr essive movement as a whole­ active unionists, liberals, progressive churchmen , and such. In fact, they even beli eve in Hearst's ballyhoo that Roosevelt and his brain trust are "Reds". But the deed s of the Black Legion speak mu ch louder than all th eir belated ravings to save themselves. It is the Black Legion that has been th e violator of the constitutional rights of fr eedom of speech, press, and assemblage. It is the Black Legion that was brought into being to undermine the century-old traditions of Ameri can liberties. The New Hood The Legion's cry of Americanism is only another hood under which it conceals its anti-American intentions. The acts and the p rogram, as exp ressed in the Legion's oath, have nothing in co m­ mon with the Am ericanism of the founders of thi s country. The Black Legion ca rries forward the rott en reaction of the T ories, of the Benedi ct Arnolds, th e Southern slave-owners, the killer s of John Br own. It has brought its program and acti on s up to dal e to suit the requirements of the modern enslavers of th e American people-the logical descendants of the Tory aristo­ crats-the du Ponts, Fo rds, Chryslers, Slo ans, "and th eir like. Th e truth is that only the mi lit ant fighters in th e labor move­ ment can rightfully ca ll th emsel ves Am eri cans. Only th ese ele­ ment s ca rry forward th e revolutionary traditions of th e founders of America. The founder s of our co untry wanted us to be free and equal, but the Bla ck Legion's program of ra ce supremacy and Negro-baiting stinks of the slave market. Washington , Jefferson, Paine, Lincoln and such as th ey, hoped thi s country would always be fr ee to all oppressed people, but th e Black Legion wants to drive out all "aliens" . One of the cardinal principles of true Americanism is fr eedom of worship and to lerance .of all religions, but the Bla ck 40 Legion has declared war on Catholics and Jews. The pride of every true American is that our country was one of the first to inscribe upon its banner the right of free speech, assemblage and press, but the Black Legion would take us back to the Middle Ages, as Hitler did in Germany, and has resorted to the vilest crimes to undermine movements not to its liking. It is not the Communists who stand for violence. It is the Legion that states in unmistaken terms in its oath that it will employ "guerilla methods" and violence "if necessary" to attain its aims. The same cry of violence that is raised against Communists is ' raised against the unions. But it has been proved repeatedly that the only cause of violence is the armed thugs, strikebreakers, mobsters and Black Legions of the employers. The Communist Party gave a clear answer to this slander through its candidate for President, Earl Browder, who said in his report to the Party's recent Ninth Convention: "The Communist Party must use the opportunity of this election campaign to smash once and for all the superstition, which has been embodied in a maze of court decisions having the fdrce of law, that our Party is an advocate of force and violence, that it is subject to laws (Federal immigration laws, state 'criminal syndicalism' laws) directed against such advocacy. The Communist Party is not a con­ spirative organization, it is an open revolutionary party, continuing the traditions of 1776 and 1861; it is the only organization that is really entitled by its program and work to designate itself as 'sons and daughters of the American Revolution'. Communists are not anarchists, not terrorists. The Communist Party is a legal party and defends its ' "legality. Prohibition of advocacy of force and vio­ lence does not apply to the Communist Party; it is properly applied only to the Black Legion, Ku Klux Klan and other fascist groupings, and to the strikebreaking agencies and the open-shop employers who use them against the working class, who are responsible for the terrible toll of violence which shames our country." No! The Black Legion has nothing in common with American­ ism. Neither has Hearst, or any of those who defend the terror­ Legion. The Black Legion symbolizes those dark forces that are today threatening everything that is dear to an American. What shall we do to scotch this Black Legion? What shall we do to drive out of existence all such organizations the country over? What can we "d o to safeguard the hard-gained civil libeiti~s of the American people? :, 41 IX.

STAMP OUT THE BLACK LEGION

The people of Michigan have long felt the black hand that was throttling their civil liberties. The climax was reached in the spring of 1935, when reactionary forces united to pass the Dunckel. Baldwin gag hill. The bill was a replica of the most sweeping of the criminal syndicalism laws that were passed in many states immediately after the war. It went as far as to declare guilty of a felony a landlord who rents a meeting place to an organization that "advocates the overthrow of the government by force and violence" and anyone who may possess any literature " advocating the overthrow ..." The labor organizations sounded the alarm. This bill was seen IIOt only as an attack upon Communists but upon the entire labor movement. It was seen as a weapon with which to frame trade union leaders and all people who express progressive thoughts. It was generally agreed that the gagging of Communists is only a beginning to gagging the people of the United States. Almost overnight the forces of progress united.' Among them were ele­ ments that for a long time fought each other bitterly. The Detroit Federation of Labor, and other central labor bodies, Communist Party, Socialist Party, numerous local unions, independent unions, Civil Liberties Union, fraternal organizations, the Farmers Union, the Methodist and other churches, liberal groups-in all 311 organizations that total a membership of almost a half million. They formed the Conference for Protection of Civil Rights.

Two Armies Meet On the other side of the battlefield combined the very same dark forces who a year later were found so intimately connected with the Black Legion. Foremost among them was former Gov· ernor Brucker. The first big clash came when a hearing was arranged on the bill in the State Capitol. The forces of progress were there in a united front representing their respective organizations. Spokes.

42 men for the reactionaries were Brucker, a White-Guard Russian, representatives of committees on "subversive activities" from veteran organizations, and representatives of the Manufacturers ' Association. The state legislators were greatly alarmed at the rise of the people. They amended and toned down the bill. But the Con­ ference for Protection of Civil Rights continued to arouse a still greater sentiment. Finally on the very last day of the legislature, when it was planned to railroad the bill through, there came a mass delegation of workers and farmers from all parts of Michi­ gan. The gallery was full. The legislators became increasingly uneasy. Finally they put through a face-saving substitute with the teeth out. The bill was quietly shelved, and was not used for over a year after its passage. The reactionaries evidently recog­ nize that they cannot do very much with it. The people of Michigan gained a partial but an important victory. "Vigilance Is the Price of Liberty" Ever since, the Conference for Protection of Civil Rights has continued and has held together the many organizations. Its watchword has been "Vigilance is the Price of Liberty". For morejhan a year it has presented a people's front movement against every expression of reaction, and on many occasions has beaten the reactionaries back. One of its outstanding campaigns was the movement for the removal of Police Commissioner General Heinrich "Hitler" Pickert (as he is now known). It compiled affidavits, and brought together witnesses to back its petition, which listed a long series of crimes by the police depart. ment since the General took command. The bill of particulars recounted the killing of at least eight individuals by policemen on mere suspicion of crime, among them two 14-year-old boys; clubbing of strikers; the refusal to apprehend bombers of labor halls, who were, in fact, encouraged by the police; the banning of workers' films; the breaking up of meetings, etc., etc. After months of effort to get a city council hearing on the petition, it was finally granted. Preceding that, however, the black forces were busy in the plants, offices, 'and government departments collecting signatures in Pickert's behalf. Their col-

43 lectors were foremen, officers of the American Legion, policem.en and such. Same United Fronts When the hearing came, again the two armies faced each other in the city council-the same united front of the people against the same reactionaries who gathered at the State Capitol. Detroit has not yet reached a point where a council will discharge its cwn police commissioner because the people demand it. But the commissioner came out of the situation greatly discredited. And this is a serious matter to a "little Hitler". Significantly, on the very day that the Council Chamber was the scene of these two armies, on May 22, the newspapers broke the story on the Poole 'murder and Black Legion. It immediately came to mind that here is the organization that has been men­ acing the rights of the people of Detroit for years, and that the police department has allowed them to do it freely. The conference threw its united forces into a drive against the Black Legion. Thanks to its work much was uncovered and author­ ities were forced to conduct what fruitful investigation there was. The conference brought together a large committee of prominent leaders to back its demand for federal action. An Example to Be Followed The work of the Conference for Protection of Civil Rights is an example of the type of action that must be carried on ill every state and city in the United States. In most cities the American League Against War and Fascism expresses such united movement. The League, during its four years of exisLence, has been crowned with great success and rapid growth. Its affiliated organizations today count over two million members. In many parts of the country the League has as broad a repre­ sentation as the Conference in Detroit. A significant feature of the League is that it is based on the understanding that fascism and war are twin dangers, that the 'very same sinister forces that endeavor to rob the people of their liberties plot to plunge them into a war. The Conference in Detroit has already taken an interest in the struggle' against' war, and' a further "devel opmen t along that line can be expected. In such manner, the people are awakening to the danger that faces America. But the fight for civil rights cannot be separated from the struggle of the working people for a happy America. Stop Landon! An immediate task is to concentrate all strength to defeat the chief enemy of the common people, the Liberty League-Hearst­ Republican combine. If their candidate, Alf Landon, wins, the reactionary organizations in the country will hold a field day. Like blood-hounds they will be let loose upon the unions and the farmers' organizations. The Republican open-shop admini­ stration of Michigan will be a pattern for the entire country. The main forces against Black Legionism will come from the growing independent political movement of the workers and farmers-the Farmer-Labor Party and the organizations that support it. Unfortunately, a national Farmer-Labor ticket was not yet possible in 1936. But there is a nationwide 'campaign to elect Farmer-Labor candidates to Congress, and to state and local offices. In some instances there are independent labor tickets that have the backing of workers' and farmers' organizations. The Communist Party has declared its full support of all such candi­ dates and put its own in the field only where there are none. In any case, only these candidates represent a genuine struggle against fascism. Their platforms call for suppression of the Black Legions and spy agencies, and for the full right to organize. Organize Industrial Unionsl But there is still another important task. To combat the forces of reaction, the 'workers need strong industrial unions In all mass production and basic industries such as automobile, steel, metal, mining, textile, and radio. It is precisely where these industries are centered that reaction reigns supreme and Black Legions grow. Only a powerful trade-union movement can defeat reac­ tion in these parts. l ohn L. Lewis, Chairman of the Committee for Industrial Organization; Francis Gorman, leader' of the textile workers; Phillip Murray, director of the campaign to 'organize the steel workers, and other industrial-union leaden; frankly stated at the At lantic City convention of the American Federati~n of

45 Labor that the serious threat of fascism makes imperative rapid organization of the workers into powerful industrial unions. They pointed to what has happened to the labor movements of Germany, Italy and Austria. A powerful steel workers' union, a powerful union of automo­ bile workers, can ride like a giant caterpillar tank over the Black Legions, spy agencies and strikebreakers in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, West Virginia, Indiana, Illinois, and other states. Com­ pany towns would give way to a new day for the workers. Stamp Out "Red-Baiting" Poisonl Finally, if organizations of the Black Legion type are really to be rooted out, it is necessary to stamp out the poison propa­ ganda of the patrioteers and Red-baiters. Their rantings rhrcugh the yellow journals against the "Reds" and "aliens" have nothing in common with the interests of true Americans, and should be rejected everywhere. It is their poison that brings division into the workers' ranks through the color line in some unions. A trade union that excludes workers because of their membership in the Communist or Socialist Party is doing precisely what the labor-hating master-minds in the Black Legion would want it to do. Members of the American Legion or Veterans of Foreign Wars, who allow themselves to be used against any workers' organizations, are similarly playing into the hands of those who conceived of the Black Legion. What we have seen in the Black Legion is only an advance warning of the kind of people that may overrun the country like vandals. We have seen how Nazism sprouted in America. It is thrown up by the Ku Klux Klan, by strikebreaking vigilantes, industrial spies and by reactionary political circles. Their backers are the big industrialists and bankers united in the Liberty-League­ Hearst-Republican combination. This election campaign furnishes an opportunity for the American people to advance against the horrors of Black Legion­ ism and to stamp out every outfit of its ilk. The central political issue of the day is the fight to maintain and extend the democratic rights of the people in the traditional spirit of true Americanism. The true Americans will not be found among the top-hat

46 backers of AU Landon. Neither are Father Charles E. Coughlin, Rev. Gerald Smith, heir to Huey Long's movement, Hearst, or any of these gentlemen who drape themselves in the American flag. These people defame Americanism only to conceal their attempts to destroy the last vestige of democratic rights. The 1936 election should result in these elements being driven out of public life. The true Americans will be found in the very movements that have been the main target of these reactionaries­ in the growing united movement of Communists, Socialists, pro­ r;ressive trade unions, farmers and middle class organizations. This people's front is advancing despite many obstacles. It is taking shape in the Farmer-Labor Party movement that has swept the country-and there could be no greater blow against reac­ tion than a mighty vote for candidates of the Farmer-Labor Party or those who support such a party.

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